Officials raised $15,000 last year, hoping to double that amount this year

Aroostook County’s 6th annual Planet Head Day will take place on Saturday, Feb. 18, during the 82th “birthday” of the discovery of Pluto. The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Wieden Gymnasium. This unique event celebrates space science while also serving as a fundraiser for C-A-N-C-E-R [Caring Area Neighbors for Cancer Education and Recovery]. To do this, participants raise money to have their heads shaved and painted as planets, dwarf planets and moons.

The staff of the University of Maine at Presque Isle’s online literary journal is celebrating the publication of its latest issue with an official Upcountry Reading and Launch Party at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 9 in the Normal Hall Faculty Lounge.

The celebration will serve as the official launch of Upcountry’s Fall/Winter issue. The journal’s student editors Mika Ouellette and Barat Qualey will be on hand, as will journal advisor Dr. Melissa Crowe. Several of this issue’s 18 contributors also will be in attendance to read from their work. Paper copies of the issue will be available and refreshments will be provided. The reading and launch party is free and open to the public.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle will host its annual spring semester American Red Cross Blood Drive on Wednesday, Feb. 1. This blood drive is sponsored by the UMPI Residence Life Office, the Brothers of Kappa Delta Phi and the Sisters of Kappa Delta Phi NAS.

The blood drive is scheduled from 12 p.m. until 5 p.m. in the Campus Center’s Multi-Purpose Room. If donors wish to reserve a time to make their donation, they should call 1-800-RED-CROSS or 768-9585 between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Walk-ins are welcome, or you can sign up at the new online appointment scheduler at www.redcrossblood.org.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle will host Ed Webster – mountain climber, author, photo-journalist, and veteran of seven Himalayan expeditions – as the next speaker in its 2011-2012 University Distinguished Lecturer Series.

Webster has achieved and survived the impossible – in 1988, he and three partners ascended a new, never-before-attempted route up Mt. Everest’s most dangerous, isolated side in Tibet with no sherpas, no radios and no oxygen. Webster will share his riveting tale of human endurance and remarkable teamwork, and provide a breathtaking slide show to accompany his story, during his presentation Everest the Hard Way on Wednesday, Feb. 8 at 7 p.m. in the Campus Center. The public is invited to attend a reception and book-signing event to be held in the Alumni Room immediately following his lecture.

One week before the Super Bowl and all the festivities surrounding it, the University of Maine at Presque Isle will host an annual party of its own for high school and college students – College Goal Sunday.

Staff members will be on hand at two locations on Sunday, Jan. 29, beginning at 2 p.m. – in Folsom 105 on the UMPI campus and also at the Houlton Higher Education Center – to assist students in completing and filing their FAFSA [Free Application for Federal Student Aid] forms. This free event is open to the entire community. High school seniors and parents are especially encouraged to attend, along with currently enrolled college students needing assistance.

The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Outdoor Adventure Program International [OAPI] is offering an adventure-packed spring full of adventures and activities for campus and community members to enjoy, including dog sledding, a ski resort getaway, a winter ascent of Mt. Katahdin, and a zip line adventure at the Grand Falls Gorge.